Zero Tolerance Policy

The Practice takes it very seriously if a member of staff or one of the doctors or nursing team is treated in an abusive or violent way.

The Practice supports the government’s ‘Zero Tolerance’ campaign for Health Service Staff. This states that GPs and their staff have a right to care for others without fear of being attacked or abused. To successfully provide these services a mutual respect between all the staff and patients has to be in place. All our staff aim to be polite, helpful, and sensitive to all patients’ individual needs and circumstances. We would respectfully remind patients that very often staff could be confronted with a multitude of varying and sometimes difficult tasks and situations, all at the same time. The staff understand that ill patients do not always act in a reasonable manner and will take this into consideration when trying to deal with a misunderstanding or complaint.

However, aggressive behaviour, be it violent or abusive, will not be tolerated and may result in a patient being removed from the practice list and, in extreme cases, the police being contacted.

In order for the practice to maintain good relations with our patients the practice would like our patients to take note of the occasional types of behaviour that would be found unacceptable:

Using bad language or swearing at practice staff

Any physical violence towards any member of the practice or other patients, such as pushing or shoving

Verbal abuse towards the staff in any form including verbally insulting the staff

Racial abuse and sexual harassment will not be tolerated within this practice

Persistent or unrealistic demands that cause stress to staff will not be accepted. Requests will be met wherever possible and explanations given when they cannot

Causing damage/stealing from the Practice’s premises, staff or patients

Obtaining drugs and/or medical services fraudulently

We ask that all patients treat our GPs and staff courteously at all times.

Removal from the practice list

A good patient-doctor relationship, based on mutual respect and trust, is the cornerstone of good patient care. The removal of patients from our list is an exceptional and rare event and is a last resort in an impaired patient-practice relationship. When trust has irretrievably broken down, it is in the patient’s interest, just as much as that of the practice, that they should find a new practice. An exception to this is immediate removal on the grounds of violence e.g. when the Police are involved.